


With Great Power comes Great Fun

by AliWC



Series: Magic Neal [1]
Category: White Collar
Genre: Crack, Multi, Pre-OT3, Shapechanger!Neal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-06
Updated: 2011-12-06
Packaged: 2017-10-27 00:16:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/289471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliWC/pseuds/AliWC
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <span class="small"> <cite> So yes, he used his gift for things that others might frown upon. He’d heard too many people shoot that naive quote at him: ‘With great power comes great responsibility’. Stan Lee had a lot to answer for. </cite> </span>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	With Great Power comes Great Fun

**Author's Note:**

> Based on the following prompt at Collarkink:
> 
> (Anonymous)  
> 2011-05-21 02:10 am  
> Neal/Peter/Elizabeth, Neal/Alex, Neal/Mozzie, Neal/Kate if you must, shapeshifter!Neal. Finding out, a snippet, angst, whatever you want! I just need this to happen. 
> 
> Thank you to Mam711 for the beta-read and clean-up. 

* * *

 

Once upon a time, Neal worried about whether he was being petty in his use of his gift, or cheating, or selfish—once upon a time. That was before he came to know the world as it really was: a selfish, petty place in which you had to cheat to survive.

So yes, he used his gift for things that others might frown upon. He’d heard too many people shoot that naive quote at him: ‘With great power comes great responsibility’. Stan Lee had a lot to answer for.

Not that many people knew. He’d never told many. Only three. But two of them were dead now. So just the one. But she’d never tell; he had things on her too. At least Alex hadn’t used the inane quote at him. She’d run away from him at first, yes, but then she’d come back, fresh-faced and full of new ideas. Because it was a lot easier to rob a museum with his gift ... which Neal was sure was one of the very few reasons Alex had decided he was all right anyway. But then he’d showed Alex that very night many more—very selfish—wonderful things that could be done with his gift. She’d screamed his name with ecstasy that night.

And he’d made Moz happy a few times too. Only Moz never knew it was him. See, because Moz was a moody guy sometimes.... And sometimes only sex would open him up to new ideas. And Neal always had new ideas and no patience. But Moz wasn’t gay. So Neal used his gift then. And Moz was never any the wiser. He was too paranoid and Neal had a freaky idea that if he ever told the guy, Moz would have him knocked out and in a cage within moments. And then he’d probably do experiments. So, Neal had never told him. Besides, it made the cons that much more fun; it was challenging to use his gift beneath Moz’s nose in impossible situations in which he would then emerge victorious and Moz would rave about how he was the best thief he’d ever met, seen or heard of. And he was; no one else had what he had.

Because of it, he was nigh uncatchable.

But because he fell in love with Peter Burke, he lost his head and began taking risks, until one day that agent popped up right in front of him and clubbed him over the head with a gun. Not really, but that’s what he’d tell anyone who asked. In truth, he just hadn’t had the heart to wipe the smirk off Burke’s face. Also, he was surrounded by Peter, other agents, and SWAT, and he definitely didn’t want to show them exactly why he’d been able to elude them for three years. Not yet anyway.

Neal had known a lot about Peter, more than the few files Moz had acquired could tell him. He’d taken to spending his spare time between jobs sitting in a tree outside the Burkes' window, just watching them; Agent Peter Burke and his wife. A wife. That had surprised Neal and he’d been a little mad and green for a while. Literally. Fortunately Moz had just thought he was sick. Neal thought he might have unconsciously been trying to change into something dangerous so he could take care of the wife problem. But then he’d sat in that tree, squawking at anything that dared roost near him, and he eventually came to love Elizabeth too.

So now, out on his leash—the other end held by the FBI—Neal was determined to find a way to be with them. Right now he was sitting on the windowsill, looking into the kitchen, and watching while Peter encircled his wife from behind and then ducked for a kiss. Neal longed to be between them, pinned to Elizabeth from behind, held in those strong arms while he hugged Elizabeth and never let go.

At the back of his mind, he realized he’d already been here for an hour; his tracker was sitting back at June’s on his bed. He was hoping it looked like he was sleeping but he couldn’t be too confident; after all, even sleeping people moved and Neal wasn’t sure whether they monitored the motion of the tracker that closely. It was all too possible.

But ... just five more minutes.

Then Elizabeth looked up out the window and gasped. “Look, Peter! A mockingbird!”  
Peter looked up, his chin resting on Elizabeth and at first he looked just as enchanted as his wife at the sight of a mockingbird perched on the windowsill looking back at them. Then for some reason his eyes narrowed.

“Wow,” Elizabeth murmured. “Do mockingbirds usually have such blue eyes?”

Neal for some reason couldn’t see the warning signs. He stared into Elizabeth’s eyes as she stared back. A pair of blue eyes locked in a trance.

Suddenly he squawked in shock and fright as a hand closed around him from behind. He scrabbled and took a last glance into the kitchen; Peter had gone. Neal turned his head—the only part of him he could move, save for his claws but they scrambled for purchase in vain. He looked up and saw Peter’s expressionless face above him as he moved back into the house.

Suddenly Neal was being placed down on the table. The moment his wings were free, he flew up, up ... somewhere. Around in circles until he spotted the wiry light fixture that hung down clear of the ceiling. When he was safely perched in place, he looked down and took note of the Burkes’ positions. Elizabeth looked horrified and was questioning Peter. He was nodding at her absently. When he didn’t answer her demands, she fell quiet, looking from Neal to Peter, trying to understand the odd behavior of her normally animal-friendly husband.

Peter just stared at Neal. Neal was tempted to blow a raspberry.

Suddenly Peter spoke. “I’m going to call up the Marshals and get them to check on the anklet. When they find it sitting empty, you’ll be on the fast track back to prison, Neal.”

Elizabeth seemed to think Peter had gone crazy. Neal seemed to think he was dead. Definitely dead.

He hesitated, looking around the room.

“There’s nowhere to go, Neal,” Peter said lightly, smugly.

How had the agent known? Neal was suddenly determined to find out. He let go of the wire he’d been sitting on and dropped, before pulling out his wings for a quick swoop until he landed on the back of the couch. Then seeing no way out ... and oh, balls, a giant yellow and very curious dog was making his way over to the couch now.

Neal had no choice. He changed back.

Satchmo whined, wagging his tail hesitantly. Neal knew what he was thinking. ‘I see you, I recognize you, but ... what the hell?’

Peter stood with crossed arms, gazing at him, admiring the sight. Elizabeth was at his side, eyes wide, hand covering her mouth, in shock.

Neal looked down and realized he was standing before the couch, naked. He usually never changed back until he was where he’d left his clothes behind.

Neal cleared his throat awkwardly and looked around for something ... anything.

“Hey El,” Peter muttered. “Look what the cat dragged in.”

The agent came forward and gave Neal a small shake of the head as he veered to the closet beneath the stairs before pulling out a blanket.

Neal very gratefully wrapped it around himself.

Then Peter put a hand to his bare chest and pushed him back. With his heels quickly caught by the base of the couch he fell back until he was sitting very vulnerably, staring back up at an all-too-confident man.

“Hey, El,” Peter called, motioning for her to come forward. “Remember what we talked about this morning?”

Elizabeth appeared at Peter’s side, still staring, hardly able to wrap her mind around whatever all this was. She hummed, too lost for words.

“Yeah?” Peter checked. Then he smiled, wrapping his arm around Elizabeth. “I don’t think it’ll be as hard as we thought to get Neal. Seems he’s already obsessed with us.”

Now it was Neal’s turn to gape. Elizabeth, warmed by this revelation, smiled, losing the shocked countenance.

“Neal?” she asked cautiously.

But Neal swallowed and couldn’t get his brain to work. Not only had he just changed, but Peter had dropped a bombshell. He’d need a few moments.

“Let me make this simple,” Peter said, still frustratingly fine with what was happening. “Neal, why were you spying on us?”

Neal felt his face flush. He guessed Peter and Elizabeth could definitely see the pink on his cheeks.

“That answer your question, honey?” Peter asked, looking like a cat that had eaten a canary.

Then, despite sitting naked, save for a blanket, on the couch in the Burkes’ household—or perhaps because of it—Neal couldn’t help thinking over all the tricks he planned to use with the Burkes. They both knew his secret, so he wouldn’t have to hold back, and later he’d find out how Peter had known, but for now, he was going to rock their worlds.  
Being a shapechanger meant being able to give them exactly what they wanted … changing gender was just the tip of the iceberg. He could make certain endowments … bigger, to begin with.

Neal grinned in anticipation. It was El’s turn to scream his name with ecstasy. And Peter.…

Peter would never let him go after this.


End file.
